By Kiara Doyal, The Seattle Medium
Seafair, Seattle’s signature summer festival known for its parades, hydroplane races, and community celebrations, has named former Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best as Queen Alcyone for its 76th annual royalty reign. Since 1950, Seafair Royalty have served as ambassadors of the festival, embodying its mission to bring people together and celebrate the region’s diverse communities.
Best, recognized for her groundbreaking career in law enforcement and commitment to public service, now joins a tradition of civic leaders and cultural icons who have represented Seafair’s spirit of unity, pride, and shared experiences.
“I was thrilled and super honored [to be named Queen Alcyone],” says Best. “I know it is a positive, fun, tradition that really goes across all ages, genders, and colors. I love the unity and other collaboration around it. The enthusiasm about bringing all these entities to Seattle to celebrate summer is pretty awesome.”
Growing up in Tacoma, Best attended Seafair events for as long as she can remember, and now she is beyond thrilled to be part of Seafair Royalty.
“I have been in the Pacific Northwest my entire life, so it has been six decades, and it is a great tradition. I watched the hydroplanes as a child. I took my kids to the torchlight parade, and now they do the same with their kids,” said Best. “It is all about family, fun, having a good time, enjoying community and all of the things in the Pacific Northwest.”
As she reflected on the moment, Best says the honor is a tribute to her many years of work as a champion for public safety, inclusivity and commitment to public service.
“Spending 28 years in the police department, I worked my way up from being a patrol officer to being the Chief of Police. I really felt that was a special kind of accomplishment and achievement, because they never had a Black woman chief before,” said Best. “I felt that great responsibility to not be the last, but to make sure I made it, so others followed behind me.”
Some of Best’s most recent accomplishments include authoring an Amazon best-selling book, Black in Blue: Lessons on Leadership, Breaking Barriers, and Racial Reconciliation and receiving the Ellis Island Medal of Honor.
“This is the third-highest honor for a civilian, and it is given to people for their public service and service to others, so it was really the recognition of a lifetime,” Best said.
Although being Seafair Queen Alcyone is a major time commitment, Best, who recognizes the historical significance of her role, says that she wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, and is looking forward to spreading the spirit of Seafair throughout the summer.
“I keep saying I traded in my eight-point hat from the police chief to this big shiny tiara,” says Best. “Who would have thought? I feel great and incredibly pleased to be involved in law enforcement, and I care a lot about community and community engagement, so that just won’t go away.”
